tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post7221258997169526287..comments2023-09-13T10:02:55.313+08:00Comments on Wistfully Linda: On Human Cloninglindahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16524291742541007382noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-82498383564085309802012-08-30T09:58:54.431+08:002012-08-30T09:58:54.431+08:00Yeah, it's sad the way the media has contribut...Yeah, it's sad the way the media has contributed to so many misunderstandings about what clones are or would be like. There's definitely not the same type of strange reactions to people conceived through IVF. But I think it'd be pretty hard to identify clones as clones just by looking (depending on how famous/recognizable the DNA donor is), so hopefully they'd mostly be ok.<br /><br />One interesting example of cloning in fiction is <i>Feed</i> by M.T. Anderson. It takes place in a futuristic society, and the main character has a friend who is rich, tall, not handsome, and very popular. Then halfway through the book you find out that his friend is a clone of Abraham Lincoln, lol.lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-17608836715569222312012-08-30T07:35:18.258+08:002012-08-30T07:35:18.258+08:00This was very illuminating. I honestly have not gi...This was very illuminating. I honestly have not given much thought to cloning because it just seems so far off in a future I probably won't see. You bring up good points though, especially about the discrimination clones will face in society. Like you, I'm glad they do not exist at the moment.The Book Wurrmhttp://www.thebookwurrm.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-35732283088804596172012-08-26T12:58:29.635+08:002012-08-26T12:58:29.635+08:00Glad to help! :) Your premise/plot sounds awesome....Glad to help! :) Your premise/plot sounds awesome. Kudos to you for making the effort to make things work. Best of luck! :Dlindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-70182855326119819002012-08-25T22:31:37.194+08:002012-08-25T22:31:37.194+08:00Thanks for your great reply and for the rec :) I w...Thanks for your great reply and for the rec :) I will definitely read the book it'll help to see how someone else has handled it.<br /><br /><br />I agree re memory transfer - it would have to be a 'machine/procedure' type explanation and actually I would want it not to work very well so the clone is absolutely convinced these memories are not hers, they are the donors, but she is not the donor, and she is an individual person with a past she wants to remember. And some of the plot would be finding out her own past and realising that identity. I would have to see how it works - I wouldn't want it to be too a) ridiculous or b) impossible but making it sound possible in that bad science way!Viklithttp://viklit.blogspot.co.uk/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-29408015288205072582012-08-24T10:52:21.284+08:002012-08-24T10:52:21.284+08:00So glad you found it helpful, Viklit! :)
Yup, if ...So glad you found it helpful, Viklit! :)<br /><br />Yup, if cloning is possible, then it's possible for the clone to be just a year younger than the DNA donor. One novel you may consider checking out is Kathryn Lasky's <i>Star Split</i>, which is about a girl and her clone who grew up separately and had no idea the other existed until a chance meetup. Her clone is around 1 year younger, I think. I loved the way Lasky portrayed the two girls as having both similarities and differences. Even though they have the same DNA, they grew up in very different circumstances, and that was reflected by their personalities, ways they expressed themselves, the way they thought. At the same time, they shared a common interest in rock climbing. And in the author's note at the back, she explains the science behind her novel, talking about cloning and genetic engineering and such. This, in my opinion, is an example of cloning handled brilliantly by a writer, so definitely worth a read. I know the premise is similar to yours, but I'm pretty sure your plots are very different, in case that worries you. :P<br /><br />As for the memory transfer, I'm kind of wary of the idea of using it in conjunction with cloning because of movies like <i>The Island</i>. There is just absolutely no way that Lincoln Six Echo would have memories from his DNA donor for no reason at all like that. That said, you certainly can give your sci-fi world a memory transplant machine that's able to transfer memories from one person to another (yeah, not possible now, but it can work through magic science :P). But the existence of such a machine would probably affect how society works in your world (would this become the new lie detector? will people use it to forget unhappy memories a la Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind? or is the machine hidden away in the lab of a mad scientist?) so you may want to explore the ramifications. But yeah, there's not going to be any automatic memory transfer from donor to clone. <br /><br />Anyway, glad my post prompted more reflection! I always love thought-provoking posts from other bloggers, so I'm glad when I'm able to do that for others as well. :)lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-25922286276487071552012-08-24T05:03:13.773+08:002012-08-24T05:03:13.773+08:00Very good post. I have been planning on writing a ...Very good post. I have been planning on writing a book about clones - more along the lines of someone who has been born as a clone younger than the person with original DNA, and discovers this fact through the novel. So it has been very useful to read this science behind this. <br /><br /><br />Can I please check: you could, at the minimum, be one year younger than the person whose DNA was taken? I have assumed the person would then be the equivalent to a twin in terms of looks and of course a person in their own right with all associated thoughts and feelings, which is the interesting part to explore, I think.<br />It is tempting to associate this with memory transfer which again is something I am considering for the plot - not possible as you say but this is where the 'fiction' line comes in perhaps? <br />and the careful balance between the science and the fiction in science fiction is ever the issue.<br />You have given me a lot to think about in how responsibly one address that science.Viklithttp://viklit.blogspot.co.uk/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-89738716316737222672012-05-17T21:58:00.977+08:002012-05-17T21:58:00.977+08:00Glad you didn't find the post boring! And yeah...Glad you didn't find the post boring! And yeah, funny how that clone comment happened to come the day after you read my post! :)lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-9037669942495283402012-05-17T12:05:32.455+08:002012-05-17T12:05:32.455+08:00Thanks for the interesting blog post. I read it ye...Thanks for the interesting blog post. I read it yesterday, and was thinking that I haven't heard someone mention their clone in quite a while, maybe even years. And then, today, someone mentioned waiting for their clone to come in the mail. I bit my tongue but thought of you!The Empty Pennoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-50932203436553026892012-05-16T10:51:17.197+08:002012-05-16T10:51:17.197+08:00Ooh, fascinating! Never watched Star Trek so it...Ooh, fascinating! Never watched Star Trek so it's cool to hear about how they dealt with science and science fiction and the issues that go with those. :)lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-30279936813265212712012-05-15T12:16:23.382+08:002012-05-15T12:16:23.382+08:00Yay, I'm so glad you liked the post! I was exp...Yay, I'm so glad you liked the post! I was expecting most people to be like, "Uh, overly long post filled with scientific jargon? SKIP!" so I really appreciate that you read and commented. :)<br /><br />As for your question -- I'm pretty sure it's not possible in the way you've described. I did some googling and found this blog post on Star Trek transporters: http://www.treknews.net/2011/05/28/science-fiction-or-science-fact-the-transporter/ <br />So yeah, given the insane amount of energy you'd need to assemble enough mass to make a grown-up, assuming all the other technologies became possible (even the ones that break the laws of physics), I'd say it's very unlikely that sci-fi clones will ever become possible.<br /><br />But thanks for bringing this up! I did come across some information on sci-fi transporters when I was researching clones, but it was cool to learn more about it. :)lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-17302534661260525002012-05-15T11:11:57.087+08:002012-05-15T11:11:57.087+08:00I'm so glad you enjoyed the post, Lura! It sta...I'm so glad you enjoyed the post, Lura! It started as a way for me to vent about people's attitudes toward cloning and science, but then I learned so much researching for this post and wanted to share it, so it's awesome to hear you found it informative. :)<br /><br />I think part of the reason people don't like to think about science is because it's so much easier to say "well that just sounds wrong" than to have to try to understand a new concept or get used to thinking differently. I know how hard it can be to reject or even modify long-held beliefs despite facts and evidence that contradict them, so sometimes people dismiss science because it tells them something they don't want to hear. If people have to tell themselves that their personal opinion is more valid than any scientific finding in order to hold on to their worldview, it's in their best interest not to give science too much credit. I think this is really sad, but it's hard to fight human nature.<br /><br />Anyway, thank you for your comment -- good to know we're of the same mind regarding science! :)lindahttp://wistfullylinda.blogspot.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-30979079910494104372012-05-15T06:07:13.658+08:002012-05-15T06:07:13.658+08:00Um, this post is amazeballs. I've got no horse...Um, this post is amazeballs. I've got no horses in this race, but it was fascinating to read about. Seriously.<br /><br />Question for further discussion: Is the kind of cloning that we see in scifi -- i.e., get some DNA, put it in a machine, and pop out a full-grown human pretty much instantaneously -- completely impossible? I mean, can we make/manipulate molecules into whatever we want? (Related: replicators from Star Trek.) Because I guess that's the only way to get a scifi-style clone: turn air molecules into skin/organ/blood molecules.Kristanhttp://kristanhoffman.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6727352439107762801.post-2307498291170353912012-05-15T05:14:35.096+08:002012-05-15T05:14:35.096+08:00"It bothers me when people choose pure emotio..."It bothers me when people choose pure emotion or superstition over facts or reason in a discussion involving science."<br /><br />YES. A million times yes. Why does science cause people to have such kneejerk reactions? Are they afraid it will be too complicated? Do scientists not do a good enough job reaching out to the "laymen"? I'm a layman when it comes to science myself, but at least I know scientists and have probably a better than average grasp of how this stuff is supposed to work. It's fascinating and frustrating that science is so poorly represented in pop culture and the media.<br /><br />Also, wow, I had a basic understanding of cloning before, but this was really clear and concise and explained a lot I didn't know. Great post! (And you're allowed to go off topic on your own blog!)Lura Slowinskihttp://luraslowinski.com/noreply@blogger.com